Ideas for breaking down rough lumber?

[rodger. 1117]

I only cut an 1/8 into the foam usually. The foam doesn't add to the mess much. The vac picks up a great deal of the dust while I'm cutting. That's the same set up I use for 14' glue line rips too. Scraps of the same thickness wood being cut supports the excess track and makes things stable and easy for 1 man to handle.

is the foam hard on the balde?

[Tpt life 2779]

It is thermoplastic. The biggest drawback is that if you cut it alone all day, you will have to de-gum your blade. This is minimized by only letting the blade project into the foam by an eighth, but some cuts can be improved with a steeper tooth approach. Short story, while there are some things to look for, the foam should not shorten the life of your blade.

[JoshC1501 98]

All of this has been mentioned before, but I usually crosscut rough lumber with a jigsaw, then rip with my bandsaw.  If its a big awkward piece then I use a circular saw to rip.  I also find for thicker stock, a reciprocating saw can be a great crosscutting tool.

[wdwerker 7647]

I took pictures of my set up to rip on foam yesterday .

Scrap of 8/4 maple supports the excess track and leaves a place to plunge and start the saw. For this 12' rip I used a combination of a roller stand and a shop table as a base.

[estesbubba 1447]

You could rip a bowling lane with that monster track!

[wdwerker 7647]

Price of that track was monstrous ! I think it was $372 for 118" track then I joined it to the 75" track.

[BrandonD 14]

Another vote for the miter saw for rough cutting to length. It's about all I use my miter saw for. Rough ripping is done on the bandsaw.